


A Wilde time to be a hero

by Trius



Category: Zootopia (2016)
Genre: F/M, Injury Recovery, My First Work in This Fandom
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-13
Updated: 2021-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-20 17:27:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,795
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30008367
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Trius/pseuds/Trius
Summary: In the original Zootopia, Judy gained all the credit on taking down Bellwether. She wasn't just a hero to Zootopia, but to prey everywhere....So, what if Nick became that beacon of hope instead?This story starts off right as Nick was placing the blueberries into the gun, at the museum scene when he pretends to go savage.Feel free to give any criticism you want. I have not only never written a Zootopia fiction, but I have also never written anything with the characters being animals. So, if you catch any thing that seems incorrect about an animal's nature, let me know; I'd be glad to adjust and fix it.Also, this is second project I've ever written with the other one was only ~11,000 words. This one, however, I am aiming to do something much bigger. I hope you enjoy.
Relationships: Judy Hopps/Nick Wilde
Comments: 9
Kudos: 30





	A Wilde time to be a hero

"Nick? Nick, what are you doing?"

"I've got a plan, Carrots, just... Trust me on this."

"What? What plan."

"She wants to dart predators, right? Well, let's give her what she wants."

"Wait, what?! You're going to _pretend_ to be savage?"

"Hey, I'm not just a pretty face, Fluff. I tricked you good the first time we met, if I remember correctly."

"Nick, it's not worth it—"

"Hey! Listen to me, Judy. Either we're making out of here together, or not at all. Alright?"

"...What if she figures it out?"

"That's not... Just stop thinking about it, we got to go!"

"Nick, if she does, I—I just wanted to let you know that... I'd forgive you."

"...Jeez, you really are a dumb bunny. You know that?"

The memory of words spoken only a moment ago echoed throughout Nick's mind as the blueberry splattered across his cheek, staining his fur. Hunching his back, pretending to struggle, he mustered out every ounce of energy into this act. He could feel his own blood pump—adrenaline surging through his veins—as he is able to feel every individual strand of fur as they stand. His ears spiked up as his claws dig into the dirt, his body temperature raising with every passing moment, and for a brief moment his act almost brought a scare to his own heart. Judy spoke something next to him, but the words of the world around him began to dissolve and become muffled through his own snarls and growls as he put all of his focus in perfecting his savage act. Sadly, he soon realizes it all meant nothing as a snide laughter fills the air—one of mockery rather than victory.

"What a clever little mutt you are!" Bellwether cackled as she opened the back chamber of the gun, revealing 2 blueberries and an empty chamber. Though uncertain, Nick attempted to maintain the act as breaking it now could be the cause for both of their deaths. The paw Judy had on his back began to quiver as a certain scent filled the air—one of unrelenting and profound fear. Through his act, he peeked over his shoulder only to catch the faintest glimpse of blueberries bouncing on the floor. In that single moment, he could swear he had just swallowed his stomach as the scent of fear only got stronger. "Surprised I figured it out? I mean, it _was_ a nice trick, but I've been covering my bases longer than you two could imagine. You think a little ploy like that would fool me? I mean, duh, I'm a sheep! Do you know how good our noses are?" the sheep said, pulling out and loading the gun with a pellet filled to the brim with the night howler toxin.

" _Obviously not._ "

In one motion, she closed the chamber and once again aimed it directly at the fox. In a moment of weakness—of fear—Nick did nothing but hunch over and cower. With his eyes closed, and his arms covering his body, time began to slow down; now drowning from the chemicals in his brain which strangled him into a state of paralysis the tod waited for the round to make contact... Yet there was nothing. Uncertainty filled his mind as he could feel an entire second pass—crawling forward over the course of what felt like an hour. Just when finally let the breath he had held in, a thump came from behind him followed by a modest squeak of pain. In that moment, reality began to unfold as he realized what had just happened. "Judy!" Nick shouted, his ears folded back as he rushed over to her side; his heart beat in his chest with a thump so heavy that he could feel the blood pump all throughout his body. Instinctively, his tail wrapped around the doe as he looked for something in a desperate attempt to help. Just behind him, the Tod spotted a bit of water and without thinking dug his claws into his left short sleeve and ripped it off. Slamming the cloth into the water and quickly folding it, he tried his hardest to wipe away the chemical which drove her mad—hopelessly praying that it would have some sort of effect.

The irony of the mirroring of positions not being lost on the sheep who could only chuckle as they watched. "Oh that is _rich!_ Here I wanted to blame Judy's death all on you, but this?! This is just pathetic." Bellwether shook her head, a smile unable to detach from her muzzle as she chuckled. Paying no attention to the ewe, Nick instead put all of his focus on the rabbit. Judy's feet kicked instinctively as panicked and primitive squeaks escaping her throat as her jaw clenched shut tight enough to where the tod was afraid they were going to crack. He reached out a paw towards the smear of purple on the back of her head, but pulled his paw back as if he could feel the heat off a hot stove. "Hey, Fluff, c'mon! You're stronger than some stupid plant, right? …Judy?" Nick spoke, his voice as steady as his shaking body. As Judy's eye opened, her pupil swallowed all of the sclera that was available to it, and all that remained was a sliver of lavender which circled the very edge of the pitch black void as if was purposefully staying outside of its event horizon. Her feet began to thump, her ears stood completely erect, her teeth chittered and ground together and though she did not growl in the traditional sense every breath came with a mixture between a grunt and a heavy snort. Nick stumbled back in horror as the once gentle doe rose up on all fours with a brief guttural snarl, spit dripping from whichever pocket it could slip through. In a flash, Judy lunged at Nick causing him to stumble and only narrowly roll out of the way. Landing without catching his footing Nick scurried to stand up as the rabbit quickly turned and lunged again, and his self preservation kicked in at the perfect moment to grab her in mid-air and toss her to the side causing her to land with a thud and a sharp squeal; instinctively, the tod reached out to help, but just as quick as they fell the rabbit spun right back up. Though the rabbit moved without being slowed by the wound on their feet Nick couldn't help but notice its leg tremble as it walked. Every subtle movement—even with something as gentle as a step—they further deepened an already devastating wound. With a heavy swallow, Nick got on all fours and tried his best to act as savage as he could in order to intimidate the rabbit away—though all that came out was the noise of a fox with a broken spirit. Unphased, the rabbit approached even closer as their ears slowly folded back, which caused the fox's faux-snarl to quickly fade into a mournful whimper. "Y—You don't gotta do this, Carrots, c'mon it's me! Your friend? Partner? ...No?"

Cackling from above, Bellwether's expression turned to one of joy—unable to hide the sick pleasure this brought her. "How does it feel, Fox? To be hunted by the prey which _you're_ the natural predator of?! If this isn't poetic justice then—by gosh—I don't know what is!" Nick's gaze flickered up towards the ewe then back to the doe. "Well, I must say," Nick spoke, his tone drenched in spite and sarcasm "I always was up for a game of cops and robbers, but I think this is a little ridiculous! Maybe you could tag in for me, huh? After all, why not play cops and robbers with a real cop and _a real criminal_." "Awww..." the sheep mockingly coo'd "Is the fox sad because he lost at his own game? Is he angry that his little bunny buddy went feral? Well, sorry to tell you Bucko but I tried to give her an out. I tried to make her a hero in this town! Instead, she quit the force on the spot because she _'felt bad'_ for the predators—probably no thanks to you too. Well, this is where it lead you Judy! You could have been the face of the ZPD, and now you're just a mindless animal! Just like the rest of the predators in this town!" As the sheep spoke, caught up in her routine, Nick kept his eye on the ball. Dodging, ducking, throwing whatever he could in order to disrupt, but never harm his rabbit friend. Using this time in the chaos, Nick hunched low in order to obscure his lower half as he managed to pull out a burner phone—one only meant to be used in case of emergencies. Without looking he shifted through the menu, selecting the only mammal he could trust with this situation at a time like this. "Is that what you really think," Nick said, a growl following each of his words as he tried misdirect the ewe's attention "Predators are just... Beasts?! Just angry—big bad—irredeemable monsters that sit under your bed waiting for you to sleep and eat you up?! Bet you think we blow down houses too, huh?"

[ **Call police. Hurt. Natural History Museum. Don't respond back]**

"Oh, please! You predators _always_ look down at us prey, figuratively and even literally at every available moment! You either end up acting high and mighty because you're a little bigger sometimes and got sharper teeth and claws, or you try to bend and break the law any way a dirty little scoundrel can. I'd call you all scum, but you're not worth the _compliment._ " Bellwether spoke harshly, and even then her tone betrayed the true level of annoyance and disgust she felt in that moment. Nick opened his mouth to speak, only to pause as the rabbit squealed in pain. All of the force on her wounded leg finally catching up to them causing them to be unable to catch themselves during their most recent lunge. The doe hit the ground hard, and tumbled until they hit a raised stone. "Carrots, are you alright!?" The tod spoke instinctively, only realizing after his words escaped his muzzle they would not reach her.

"N......N.....k......"

The fox's ears fell and his tail limp as the chitter escaped the rabbit's throat. In that moment, something broke inside the fox. He was uncertain whether or not the rabbit simply made a noise that sounded similar to his name, or despite everything that was happening to her that there was still a small piece of her that was still struggling. The idea that somewhere inside that Rabbit laid Judy, the only other mammal that ever trusted him and saw him more than just a shady good-for-nothing, and that she may be banging for help beyond those glass eyes as her body moved on its own tore apart his very soul. His back to a wall, Nick knew that if he tried to dodge now that the doe would smash her head into the wall. With their current state, he's unsure if she would even be able to survive such an impact. As she lunged at him with the same force she used to take down megafauna, the tod simply stood there and held his arms out. As she slammed into him, his arms wrapped around her as his back slammed into the wall with enough force to knock every ounce of wind out from his lungs. In a single motion, the rabbit plunged their teeth deep into the side of his right shoulder causing the tod to whimper in agony. Trying to catch his breath with the world spinning, Nick used his well-practiced mastery of slight of paw to grab the pen which stuck out of the doe's pants and pulled it into his grip, and then threw out a Hail Mary. "So... You're just going—ngh... To practically commit genocide because sometimes people are jerks? You're not... Going to get away with this."

At this point, the fox can't really hear what the sheep said. The words were heard, yet never registered, but he made sure to click the record button on that simple carrot pen. The same one that dragged him into this situation in the first place, that led him to meet an amazing mammal that he was proud to call a friend. Nick listened as the sheep prattled on about... Something, and while he couldn't exactly understand it he could hear that all-too-familiar tone inside of it. Joy, glee, one of a mammal who thought they won, but sadly he couldn't argue that she _had won_ in this case. The only hope available to the tod was, when his body was found, so too would the pen be and his mission would end in one of martyrdom. The pain in his shoulder spiked, teeth burrowing through his flesh with intent to hit bone; he could only muster the energy gently caress their fur. As his large paw touched the doe, so too came another squeak as she burrowed their front claws over the shoulder and into his back, kicking with their feet gashing open his shirt and flesh. Yet, this did not stop the fox who simply continued to carelessly and fruitlessly attempt to soothe the savage bunny. As his paw hit their ears, they seemed to melt down with the stroke, sticking down rather than shooting back up. From their body, the fox could smell the scent of fear in the air once more come from the rabbit. He couldn't tell if it was because the savage creature was truly afraid, or if something else deep inside was kicking and screaming just as it did on the outside.

"Hey, Fluff... Guess you were right. It really was a bad con after all, wasn't it? Would have been pretty cool if it worked though, right?" Nick spoke, his voice coming out hoarse and heavy whisper which was just loud enough to be heard over the rabbit's growls. The world completely melted, and all that was left to Nick was the two of them, holding each-other in mock solitude; for some reason the tod found himself laughing at the absurdity of it all. The entirety of their journey ran through his head, from the naturalist club all the way to the exploding train car. Together, the two escaped a savage panther, fell from the highest tree only to be caught of hundreds of vines, became the godmother to Mr. Big's granddaughter... Despite all of the odds they had somehow snuck through yet here they lie, defeated by a sick and twisted sheep right at the finish line. The only hope he clung onto—the only spark of light at the end of the tunnel—was hoping someone was able to arrive just before he died so that the rabbit could make it out as well—it was the only reason he still forced himself to breathe. "You know," the fox spoke with a chuckle "You're gonna be a wreck if you get out of this, huh? Such an emotional bunny, just what _are_ you going to do without me?"

As the words slipped, so too did his mask, as the words began to crack with a subtle fear and an overwhelming sorrow. "You probably won't remember me saying this, but I'm actually kind of happy to die this way. I always expected that I was going to go out with some stupid mistake, doing a stupid con... Heh, I guess that's actually _exactly_ what happened, isn't it? But... I didn't go out trying to make twenty bucks from some poor shmuck. I went out trying to help some dumb cottontail to fulfill her even dumber dream of making the world a better place. When you gave me that paper, asking me—of all people—to be your partner, I... Well, let's just say it was the first time in a while that I was actually speechless. To think, some sly rabbit newbie cop out hustled a con-artist at their own game and ended up asking them to not just be a cop, but to be the cop they want to trust with their back? Out of all the things in the world, if you would have asked me which was the least likely, well by gosh I think that might'a just been it." With a final quiver in his voice, but a smile on his muzzle, he looked over to the creature mangling his shoulder.

"Hey Judy? If you remember one thing, just remember that...That... _I forgive you._ "

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's a bit shorter then I wanted to start with, but that's the problem when you begin your story at the end of a much longer climax. Hopefully, I paced things enough to still make it enjoyable and not too fast paced right out the gate.
> 
> Also, it turns out I accidentally... Turned off the fact that this was private. I'm leaving this first chapter out for now, if anything to give a taste for what's to come, but I honestly wasn't fully done editing everything. This project may not be worked on for a bit, because I want to have a decent amount of the story written before I start submitting it to the public. That way, I only have to focus on the editing side of things in order to bring higher quality content at a decent rate.


End file.
